Olive Borden

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Olive Borden bigraphy, stories - Actress

Olive Borden : biography

July 14, 1906 – October 1, 1947

Olive Borden (July 14, 1906 – October 1, 1947) was an American actress in film and stage actress who began her career during the silent film era. Nicknamed "The Joy Girl", Borden was known for her jet-black hair and overall beauty.

At the peak of her career in the mid-1920s, Borden was earning $1,500 a week. In 1927, she walked out on her contract with Fox after refusing to take a pay cut. By 1929, her career began to wane due to her reputation for being temperamental and her difficulty transitioning to sound films. She made her last film, Chloe, Love Is Calling You, in 1934 and moved on to stage work for a time. By the late 1930s, she had declared bankruptcy and stopped acting. During World War II, she joined the WACs. She was later honorably discharged after sustaining a foot injury and attempted to make a comeback in films. However, Borden’s attempts to get back into acting were hindered by her alcoholism and health problems.

In 1945, she began working at the Sunshine Mission, a home for destitute women located in the skidrow section of Los Angeles. She died there in October 1947 of a stomach ailment and pneumonia at the age of 41.

Early life

Olive Borden was born in Richmond, Virginia in 1906. Her birth name was often reported erroneously as Sybil Tinkle until the 1990s when it was discovered that another woman with the same name had been confused with Borden. Borden’s father died when she was a baby and she was raised by her mother, Sibbie, in Norfolk and Baltimore, Maryland where she also attended Catholic boarding schools. She was a distant relative of Lizzie Borden. As a teenager, she persuaded her mother to take her to Hollywood to pursue a career in show business. To support themselves they opened a candy store and Olive worked as a telephone operator.

Footnotes

Works cited

  • Ankerich, Michael G. (2010). Dangerous Curves Atop Hollywood Heels: The Lives, Careers, and Misfortunes of 14 Hard-Luck Girls of the Silent Screen. BearManor. ISBN 1-59393-605-2
  • Brettell, Andrew; King, Noel; Kennedy, Damien; Imwold, Denise (2005). Cut!: Hollywood Murders, Accidents, and Other Tragedies. Leonard, Warren Hsu; von Rohr, Heather. Barrons Educational Series. ISBN 0-7641-5858-9.
  • Klepper, Robert K. (1999). Silent Films, 1877-1996: A Critical Guide to 646 Movies. McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0595-3
  • Liebman, Roy (2000). The Wampas Baby Stars: A Biographical Dictionary, 1922-1934. McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0756-5.
  • Lowe, Denise (2005). An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early American Films, 1895-1930. Haworth Press. ISBN 0-7890-1843-8.
  • Shipman Springer, John; Hamilton, Jack D. (1974). They Had Faces Then: Super Stars, Stars, and Starlets of the 1930s. Citadel Press. ISBN 0-8065-0300-9.
  • Vogel Michelle. (2010). Olive Borden: The Life and Films of Hollywood’s Joy Girl. McFarland. ISBN 0-786-45836-4.

Death

Borden died on October 1, 1947 from a stomach ailment and pneumonia at the age of 41. The only possession she had when she died was a signed photo of herself. Borden’s funeral was held on October 3 at the Sunshine Mission where she worked before her death. The Mission’s founder, Essie Binkley West, officiated the service. Borden was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Her mother Sibbie was interred in the grave next to her.

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Olive Borden has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. She was one of the first eight stars chosen to receive a star in 1958. Her name was drawn randomly from hundreds of nominees.

Personal life

Relationships

From 1926 until 1930 she had been romantically involved with actor George O’Brien and the press reported they were engaged. She also dated director Marshall Neilan, producer Paul Bern, and had a long affair with Arthur Benline, Lieutenant Commander in the Navy Construction Battalion.